Taste-modifying composition

ABSTRACT

A process is provided for obtaining a dry powdered concentrate containing the taste modifying principle from Synsepalum dulcificum Daniell, is a stable form which is useful in conjunction with foods such as confections, desserts, jellies, jams, canned fruit, beverages, and coatings to render sourtasting foods sweet tasting, and to improve the flavor of certain foods while maintaining this taste modifying characteristic for long periods under normal atmospheric conditions. The concentrate is obtained by comminuting the ripe fruit of Synsepaulm duclificum Daniell, spray drying the comminuted slurry to reduce the moisture content between 0.5 to about 5% by weight, and separating the spray dried powder obtained on a density basis to recover a high density fraction. Carbohydrates fats and pigments can be removed from the stable taste-modifying principle by solvent extraction to obtain concentrated compositions of the stable taste-modifying principle which are employed to form unit dosage forms thereof.

United States Patent 1191 Harvey et al.

[ TASTE-MODIFYING COMPOSITION [22] Filed: Aug. 30, 1973 [21] App]. No.:392,942

I Related US. Application Data {60] Continuation-impart of Ser. Nos.28,981, April 15,

1970, Pat. No. 3,676,149, and Ser. No. 130,481, April 1, 1971,abandoned, a division of Ser. No. 269,972, July 10, 1972, Pan-No.3,824,323.

[52] US. Cl. 424/175; 424/195; 426/148 [51] Int. Cl. A61K 35/78 [58]Field of Search 424/195, 175

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 9/1970 Polli et a1 424/175OTHER PUBLICATIONS Inglett et al. J. Agr. and Fd. Chem, Vol. 13, No. 3,(1965), PP- 285-287.

Primary Examiner-Norman A. Drezin 57 ABSTRACT A process is provided forobtaining a dry powdered concentrate containing the taste modifyingprinciple from Synsepalum dulcificum Daniell, is a stable form which isuseful in conjunction with foodssuch as confections, desserts, jellies,jams, canned fruit, beverages, and coatings to render sour-tasting foodssweet tasting, and to improve the flavor of certain foods whilemaintaining this taste modifying characteristic for long periods undernormal atmospheric conditions. The concentrate is obtained bycomminuting the ripe fruit of Synsepaulm duclificum Daniel], spraydrying the comminuted slurry to reduce the moisture content between 0.5to about 5% by weight, and separating the spray dried powder obtained ona density basis to recover a high density fraction. Carbohydrates fatsand pigments can be removed from the stable tastemodifying principle bysolvent extraction to obtain concentrated compositions of the stabletastemodifying principle which are employed to form unit dosage formsthereof.

5 Claims, 1 Drawing Figure TASTE-MODIFYING COMPOSITION This applicationis a continuation-in-part of our application Ser. No. 28,981, filed Apr.15, 1970, now US. Pat. No. 3,676,149, 'entitled Taste ModifyingComposition and Method of Preparation and our application Ser. No.130,481 filed Apr. 1, 1971, .now abandoned, entitled, Unit Dosage With.Variable Temporal Characteristics for Modifying Sour Taste, and adivision of our application Ser. No. 269,972, filed July 10, 1972, nowUS. Pat No. 3,824,323, entitled Method of Preparing Taste-ModifyingComposition. This invention relates to a stable taste-modifyingcomposition and to its method of preparation.

Synsepalum dulcificum Daniell, Sapotaceae is a plant indigenous toWest-Central Africa which bears a red ellipsoid fruit commonly known asmiracle fruit. The fruit has a palatable pulp and skin and contains alarge seed. It is characterized by pleasant taste-and by the uniqueproperty, well-recognized for over 200 years, of modifying the sweet andsour tastes in the unusual manner. It has been found that theproteineous component in the fruit binds at sites on the tongue and inthe oral cavity and, once bound at these sites, alters the way in whichthe taste receptors respond to certain foodstuffs eaten subsequently.This is particularly true of sour or acidic foods such as fruit. Anynormally sour food eaten within a short period after first contactingthe tongue with the pulp of fresh miracle fruit, causes the normallysour food to taste pleasantly sweet. By exposing the taste receptors onthe tongue to mirable fruit, any sour tasting food can be made to tastesweet without the addition of sugar or artifical sweeteners. Forexample, fresh lemon can be made to taste pleasantly sweet by firsteating a miracle fruit berry. It not only sweetens the lemon but alsoimproves its flavor. Therefore, the fruit of Synsepalum dulcificum is ataste modifier which both sweetens and improves the flavor of normallysour tasting foods. It also selectively enhances the flavor of a fewfoods not normally regarded as tasting sour, such as mushrooms,cantalope melons, and several vegetables.

Two investigators have identified a specific form of the activeprinciple in miracle fruit as a glycoprotein having a molecular weightof about 44,000. Several approaches have been explored in attempts toisolate the active component in the miracle fruit for subsequent use asa taste-modifying material. These attempts have met with only verylimited success either because of the form of the product obtained bythese methods is less effective than the natural fruit, or it was foundto be unstable at normal room temperatures under normal atmosphericconditions. This instability necessitated either very quick use afterisolation or storage at very low temperatures, either or both of whichseriously limits principle in the order of about a week or so, it hasbeen found that its stability could not be maintained in a powder format normal room ambient conditions. Altematively, the material wasdissolved in specific solvents maintained at a specific pl-l. Thesesolutions had to be refrigerated to be preserved, and even then this 2material was not stable for more than 2 weeks. Also material isolated inthe past has not been effective as the natural fruit, particularly inits ability to improve the flavor of certain foods.

The active principle is present in the .pulp and on the inner surface ofthe skin of the miracle fruit berry, and in its natural environment itis quickly deactivated especially when exposed to air once the skin isbroken at room temperatures. Furthermore, after the fruit has beenpicked, even prior to breaking the skin, the active material begins todegrade but at a slower rate than when the skin is broken. While theprocess by which degradation proceeds is not known exactly, it is nowbelieved that certain enzymes present in the fruit acceleratedegradation in the presence of air and moisture at normal roomtemperatures. It has been found that when the pulp of miracle fruit isfrozen and subsequently lyophilized to form a granular or powdermaterial, the product had to be either stored in a dessicator orrefrozen in order to maintain the activity of the material thatremained.

The prior art processes for isolating the active principle based uponextraction techniques not only resulted in products which are not stableat room ambient conditions, but also products that do not exhibit thefull flavor enhancing characteristics. Photomicrographs of stainedsections of the fruit pulp of the berry, show'that the active principleis an integral part of the cellular membranes that permeate throughoutthe fruit pulp..

The glycoprotein is particularly concentrated in the membranes justbeneath the skin of the berry and in the membranes surrounding the largesingle central seed. In order to extract the glycoprotein in a pureform, the prior art used various means for breaking the bonds holdingthe. glycoprotein at sites in these membranes. It is believed that theconditions employed in the extraction processes modify the activeprinciple so as to re-.

move certain prosthetic groups or sugar moities from the basic molecule,thus accounting for some of the loss of flavor-enhancing characteristicsin the product obtained. In addition, it is believed that the removal ofthese groups from the molecule, alters the molecule in such a way as toeffect the physical characteristics of the active substance. Forinstance, the material known as miraculin, prepared by the methodsdescribed by Kurihara and Beidler, Science, Volume 1, pages 1241-1243,1968, both tend to agglomerate, even when prepared as a dry powder. Thisrelatively pure glycoprotein with a molecular weight of approximately44,000, is not stable at'room temperature and normal ambient conditionsfor more than a week or two. Although the exact mechanisms are notcompletely understood, it is believed that the bonds originally bindingthe molecule to the cellular membranes, as well as the sites originallyoccupied by sugar moities, are involved in this alteration in thephysical properties of the material. Possibly degradation ordenaturation is by autolysis' which degrades the taste-modifyingprinciple and causes it to lose its ability to modify the sweet and soutastes and its ability to enhance flavors.

' In applicants prior above-identified application Ser; No. 28,98 1,there is described a composition containfoods. The process described inthe prior applicationv for obtaining the concentrate involvedebrriminuting the miracle fruit pulp and skin at low temperature,separating the vaporous and liquid components from the solid componentsat low temperature such as by freezedrying, to fonn a solid residue; andfinally separating the concentrate on the basis of density from thesolid residue. It was believed that a significant loss of activity wouldoccur if the comminution and separation of liquid and vaporouscomponents were not conducted at low temperatures. Accordingly, in thepreferred process, frozen carbon dioxide or water was added to the fruitduring comminution, and freeze-drying was employed to separate theliquid and vaporous components. In addition, it was believed desirableto remove as much of the water as possible from the solid material richin the active principle to minimize or eliminate degradation of theactive principle.

Applicants now have discovered that it is not necessary to comminute themiracle fruit pulp and skin at such low temperatures prior to dryingsince the time necessary to complete comminution is short and the lossof the active principle is not significant. In addition, applicants nowhave discovered that the temperature of about 40C. or below need not beemployed during dehydration to prevent degradation of the activeprinciple since the comminuted miracle fruit can be dehydrated quicklyat slightly elevated temperatures without significant loss of the activeprinciple.

The material rich in the active principle obtained by the process ofthis invention is a powdered or granulated composition which is stablein a powdered form at normal atmospheric conditions over extendedperiods of time of a year or more and having the characteristics ofsurpressing sour taste while accentuating sweet and salt taste, andenhancing the flavor of foods ingested subsequently. The product is astable, cream-colored powder comprising the active principle admixedwith material inert with respect to the characteristic of surpressingsour taste, but excluding components that degrade the active principlepresent in the pulp and skin of miracle fruit including the activeenzymes that normally would degrade the active principle. Since theproduct of this invention is extremely sable, it can be used in manyapplications for which the unstable prior art products are not suitable.Thus, the product of this invention can be coated on or admixed withmany foods to modify their taste without the necessity of specialpackaging or quick use. The unstable prior art products are not usefulin most of these applications due to their instability believed to becaused by the hygroscopic nature of the carbohydrate components in thefruit which causes the absorbed moisture to actuate the enzymes retainedin the pulp even after dehydration.

In accordance with the process of this invention, a stable compositioncontaining the active principle in concentrated form is obtained bycomminuting depitted ripe miracle fruit containing the active principleand then separating the vaporous and liquid components. The activeenzymatic components of the ripe fruit that normally degrade the activeprinciple, are either separated from, or deactivated, in the finalconcentrate. The liquid and vaporous components are separated byspray-drying and the enzymatic components are separated by means thateffects separation on the basis of density. The processes describedtherein are based upon the approach of removing from the fruit, orotherwise deactivating, those constituents in the fruit which areresponsible for its instability or other undesirable characteristicsrather than trying to remove the active principle from its natural sitein the fruit, as have all the previous investigations. In this manner,it is believed that the active principle remains bound to the cellularfragments thus retaining its molecular structure as is the case in thenatural fruit, but in the absence of active enzymes present in thenatural fruit.

To minimize loss of the active principle after picking, the whole fruitcan be frozen to very low temperatuers to await processing of the fruitpulp and skin can be processed immediately or within about 10 hoursafter picking to obtain the active principle concentrate. Communition ofthe fruit serves to fracture the cell walls and thereby exposesubstantially all of the active principle and facilitate subsequentprocessing. Comminution is effected to obtain particles having an aeragesize of about 50 to 300 microns. The comminuted particles then are driedby spray-drying to dry the particles. The particle temperature duringspray-drying is controlled by controlling particle residence time in thedrying gas, and temperature of the drying gas. When employing a dryinggas containing a relatively large concentration of free oxygen, particletemperature is maintained below about C, preferably between about 50 and70 C since it has been found that at elevated temperatures the freeoxygen oxidizes a portion of the active principle thereby reducing itseffectiveness for modifying the taste receptors of the tongue. Incontrast, when the drying gas contains little free oxygen, i.e. lessthan about 10 vol. or no free oxygen, slightly higher particletemperatures can be effected since the active principle will not becomeoxidized but not such high particle temperatures as to thermallydenature the proteinaceous active principle. For example, when employinga gas such as carbon dioxide or nitrogen containing little or no freeoxygen, particle temperatures in the order of about 165C can be employedfor residence times normally encountered in spray-drying apparatus,i.e., in the order of a few seconds or less. When employing air,economic advantages are obtained because of the ready gas supply and itis believed that at the particle temperatures set forth above for air,that at least a portion of the enzymes that degrade the active principlebecome deactivated, possibly by oxidation. If the spray-dried activeprinciple is not separated from the material containing the activeenzyme, the product remains unstable and will be degraded quickly atnormal room condition so that it loses its taste-modifying effects. Thematerial rich in the active principle has a substantially higher densitythan the material containing the enzyme. Therefore, the separation ofthe active principle, that may contain some cellulosic material, frommaterial containing the enzyme is effected by processes that separatematerials on a density basis.

The invention will be more fully described with reference to theaccompanying FIGURE.

Referring to the FIGURE, washed depitted ripe miracle fr'uit berries aredirected through conduit 1 to comminuter 2 wherein the skin and fruitpulp are blended to an average particle size less of about 50 to 300microns. The comminuted berries then are directed through conduit 3 tofilter 4 wherein the particles having an average size less than micronsare separated from larger size particles. The larger size particles arerecycled to the comminuter through conduit 5 while the small sizeparticles in slurry form pass into hopper 7. The particles are thenwashed several times in a solvent which dissolves carbohydrates such asa mixture of ethanol (75%) and water (25%) which solvent can also removevarious pigments, some fat, and other more soluble components. Removalof these components increases the concentration of the active principle.The essentially colorless, tasteless concentrate which is very nearlynon-hygroscopic, does .not result in rancidity due to oxidation of thefat components. The solid residue is pumped to spray drier throughconduit 11 by pump 8 wherein they are contacted within a dry gas such asair, carbon dioxide or nitrogen, which enters through conduit 12a. Thefruit is spray dried in chamber 12 under conditions so that the particletemperature is carefully controlled to prevent excessive oxidization orheat degradation of the taste-modifyingprinciple as described above. Acold gas is introduced through conduit 15 into plenum 16 and throughconduits 17 so as to reduce the temperature in the spray dryer 10. Thedry particles then are directed through conduit 19 to cyclone 20 whreinthe particles are separated from the gas. The particles then aredirected through conduit 21, wherein they are contacted with air whichis pressurized by means of primary blower 22. The pressurized aircarries the particles into a separator wherein the particles areseparated on the basis of density.

The particles are introduced into the separator 25 tangentially alongthe walls thereof so that the particle mixture passes downwardly throughseparator 25 in a spiral path. At a vertically intermediate height ofseparator 25, a secondary air stream is introduced into plenum 26 whichthen is passed through permeable wall 27 which extends around thecircumference of separator 25. When the downwardly moving particlescontact the secondary air stream which isintroduced radially, the lowerdensity particles are accelerated towards the center of the separator 25and are confined and segregated from the higher density particles bymeans of hopper 28. The higher density particles bypass hopper 28 andare collected in collecting means 29. The lower density particles aredirected to a second separator 30 and introduced tangentially therein sothat they are passed downwardly in a spiral path. A secondary gas streamis introduced into plenum 31 and through permeable wall 32 extendingaround the circumference of the separator 30. The low density particlesare collected .in hopper 31a and the higher density particles arecollected in collector 32a in a manner described with reference toseparator 25. The separators 25 and 30 are more fully described in acopending application filed concurrently herewith by Robert J. Harveyand entitled, Method and Apparatus for Separating Particles on the Basisof Size of Density.

The gas obtained from cyclone 20. contains moisture and some particles.Accordingly, when air is not employed, prior to recycling the gas tospray drier 10 it is filtered in filter 35 and directed to condenser 36wherein liquids are condensed therefrom and removed through conduit 37.The gas is then further dried in the presence of a desiccator in drier37a. The dried gas is then directed to plenum l l by means of primaryblower 38. The gas is heated in heater 40 to a temperature of about 175to 200C to accelerate liquid evaporation in the spray drier 10. Makeupdry gas is introduced from reservoir 41 into the primary blower 38.'Whenair is used as the drying gas, the system is operated as an open cyclesystem with the incoming air entering the system at filter 35 beingexhausted to the atmosphere directly from the cyclone separator 20.

The preferred process of this invention is based upon the discovery thatdegradation of the active principle in the fruit is initiatedimmediately after the ripe fruit is picked, and that degradation of theactive principle in its natural enviroment is accelerated by increasedtemperature and by contact with air. Thus, it is preferred to processthe ripe miracle fruit quickly, and at a relatively low temperature inorder to obtain a high yield of the active principle. Preferably, thepicked fruit is washed in water and then depitted at about 1 to 4C. Thefruit can be stored in a frozen state to await processing or can beprocessed-immediately to obtain the active principle. When stored,temperatures of about 40C. or less are employed to arrest degradation.Since it is difficult to remove the pit or seed from the frozen berry,it is preferred to depit the berry prior to frozen storage. The depittedberry, regardless of whether it has been stored previously or whether itis processed directly after having been picked, is comminuted to obtainparticles having an average size less than about microns, preferablyless than about 50 microns. Comminution can be effected at normal roomambient conditions and generally is completed within a few seconds.Comminution can be effected by blending, grinding or milling. Thepreferred method is by use of a Fitz-mill.

During spray drying, the particles are contacted with a dry gas streamsuch as air, carbon dioxide or nitrogen at an elevated temperature. Thedried particles contain from about 5 wt. water down to the amount ofwater comprising water of hydration in the protein molecule or about 0.5wt.

The powdered product then is further separated on the basis of density.The separation of the material containing the concentrated activeprinciple from the other dry material is based upon the fact that thematerial rich in the active principle is more dense than the othermaterial. Thus, the mixture of inerts and active material describedabove can be separated by any convenient density separation methodincluding settlingfrom a suspension of the mixture in liquid, the use offluidizing bed technique, or through the use of cyclone type centrifuge.

The solvent extraction step to remove carbohydrates is conducted byadmixing the comminuted ripe fruit with the solvent one or more timesand then separating the remaining solid from liquid, as for example byfiltration and then removing residual solvent by evaporation. Thesolvent extraction to remove carbohydrates can be conducted either priorto or subsequent to the spray-drying step. The solvent employeddissolves the carbohydrate without dissolving or degrading a substantialportion of the active principle. Representative suitable solventsinclude water, and ethanol water mixtures or the like. When employingwater or solvents containing water, prior to the spray-drying step, thesolvent extraction step should be conducted relatively quickly, i.e. forless than about 10 or 15 minutes since water tends to acceleratedegradation of the active principle by the enzymes in the fruit. It ispreferred to conduct the solvent extraction step prior to spray dryingsince residual solvent in the comminuted fruit can be removed therefromin the spray-drying step.

In another aspect of the present invention, the concentrate containingthe active principle can be treated further to improve its appearancefor use in foods while not degrading the active principle. Thus, theconcen- I trate can be treated to remove further any reddish color ofthe ripe fruit by introducing a bleaching agent into the comminuted pulpprior to spray drying or by additional solvent extraction using analcohol-water mixture. A suitable bleaching agent is soldium sulfite.Furthermore, it has been found that miracle fruit contains certain fattymaterials which upon oxidation may impart a slightly rancid taste to thestable product. Accordingly, the spray dried product can be treatedeither after the spray-drying step or the density separation step with asolvent extraction step using a solvent for fats which is subsequentlyseparated from the end product using conventional filtering techniques.Suitable solvents include acetone or ether. The last trace of thesolvent is removed from the concentrate containing the active principleby evaporation which is readily accomplished with such volatilesolvents.

In one aspect, the present invention provides a stable compositioncontaining a higher concentration of the taste-modifying principle thanis obtained by the process disclosed in the above-identified copendingapplication Ser. No. 28,981. It has been found that up to about 65weight percent of the product obtained by our prior process comprisecarbohydrates and other soluble components which can be removed from thecomposition by solvent extraction. The stable taste-modifying principlein the composition of this invention and that disclosed in priorapplications are the same since the carbohydrates are inert with respectto the tastemodifying characteristics of these compositions. However,the concentrated composition of this invention provides a substantialadvantage over that disclosed by our prior application since muchsmaller unit dosage forms can be prepared therefrom. As disclosed by ourprior application Ser. No. 130,481, unit dosage forms contain from aboutto 100 milligrams of the prior stable taste-modifying material. Incontrast, the low carbohydrate compositions of the invention are usefulin unit dosage forms in amounts from about 1 to milligrams.

The composition of this invention comprises particulate solid rich inthe taste modifying principle of Synsepalum dulcificum Daniell forsuppressing sour taste and enhancing sweet and salt taste obtained fromthe ripe fruit of Synsepalum dulcificum Daniell which is substantiallyfree of the components of the ripe fruit that degrade thetaste-modifying principle and substantially free of the hygroscopicsoluble carbohydrate of the ripe fruit. The taste-modifying compositioncontains less than about 25 weight percent carbohydrates, as compared toabout 70 weight percent in the product obtained by the process of Ser.No. 28981.

The stable taste-modifying composition substantially free ofcarbohydrates can be employed to form unit dosage forms that areeffective for varying the time period the composition modifies the tastereceptors of the tongue.

In designing a unit dosage form, there are a number of variables to beconsidered, the most important of which are:

l. The level of activity of the taste modifying effect (level ofsweetness and the qualitative taste characteristics of the flavorenhancing effect);

2. The duration of the taste-modifying effect;

3. The speed of reaction; that is, the time after chewing the unit doseform before it becomes fully effective;

4. The economics of the separate unit dose form.

All of these above variables are affected by both the close, or theamount, of the taste-modifying composition, as well as the particle-sizedistribution of the active principle.

The smaller the particle size, of the active principle, the more rapidlythe full taste-modifying effect becomes effective. Therefore, thisrelationship is relatively straight-forward. Similarly with theeconomics, the lower the dose, the more favorable the economics,particularly for higher volume production.

The relationship of the level of sweetness and quality of theflavor-modifying characteristics, and the duration of thetaste-modifying effect, as a function of the particle size distribution,are all much more involved. As one holds the particle size distributionconstant, and increases the dose, one finds that there are two distinctpatterns of response. From a unit dose less than 1 mg to a dose up toabout 15 to 20 mg, there is a rapid increase in the level of sweetnessthat one perceives from otherwise sour foods eaten subsequently toadministering the separate unit dose form. Above about 20 mg, increasingthe dose further, does not cause a further increase in the level ofsweetness. In other words, the saturation point has been reached.

Similarly with the duration of the taste-modifying effeet. As the doseis increased from less than 1 mg to about 25 mg, one notes that theduration of the tastemodifying effect is extended from a few minutes tomore than an hour. As the dose is increased much above a dose of 25 mg,there is not much further increase in the duration of thetaste-modifying effect. On a cost effectiveness basis, there is noadvantage in having a dose greater than 25 mg.

If one holds the dose constant, say at 10 to 15 mg, and varies theparticle size of the active ingredient, one also notes changes in boththe level of taste-modifying activity as well as the duration of theeffect. However, the upper and lower limits of particle size aredetermined by other considerations. On the large particle size, onefinds it difficult to formulate mixtures of dry powders when theparticle size is larger than about 300 ,u. Similarly, when the particlesize drops much below 50 ,u, certainly below 10 p., one finds itdifficult to work effectively with such fine material. Therefore, therange of particle size of interest is 10 to 300 p.. This particle sizerange for a fixed dose of about 12 mg, gives a duration of response froma few minutes to about 1 hour. Of course, if one wants a fast-actingresponse, one should include a significant fraction of EXAMPLE I Ripemiracle fruit berries are picked and washed in cold water.

The fruit then is depitted in a juicer comprising a perforatedcylindrical housing with a rotating brush extending along thecylindrical length, the ends of which contact the inside cylinder wall.During rotation, the berries tumble and are pressed against theperforated The slurry (solid phase) is then pumped to a spray drierwherein the particles contact an incoming stream of dry air, at atemperature such that the particle temperature does not exceed more thanabout 80C., usually from about 60C. to about 70C. The average contacttime of the particles and gas in the spray drier particles is less thanabout a second. The moisture content of the final spray dried powder isabout 3 to 5 wt.

The fine dried powder obtained from the spray drier is introduced into apneumatic cyclone-type separator, whereby the material rich in theactive principle is concentrated near the inside wall and the othermaterial is concentrated closer to the center of the cyclone. Themixture to be separated is introduced into the top of the cyclone andcaused to move in a circular path down the inside wall. The product isseparated from the lower density material by a baffle located at theinterface be tween the high and low density material. The lower densitymaterial is recycled until substantially all the active principle isseparated. The concentrated product can be recycled if necessary, toachieve any degree of separation from the lower density material.

The powder obtained by this process has a moisture content of 1-3 wt. itis room temperature stable even when stored in the open atmosphere forat least a year or more; and it can be used to produce unit dose formsincluding tablets or aerosol sprays. The dry powder obtained containsabout 40% protein, about 25% carbohydrates, about 3% moisture, and theremainder fat and inerts.

EXAMPLE II The procedure of Example I was followed with the additionalstep of washing the comminuted particles with acetone to solubilizeselectively the fats remaining in the spray-dried powder.

The slurry then is evaporated in air at an ambient temperature to removethe residual acetone and to reduce the moisture content of the powderfrom about 3 wt. to about 1 wt. or less. It is not necessary to employ acontrolled atmosphere in the acetone-removal step. After the acetone isremoved, the powdered product is directed to the powder separation stepsas described in Example I.

EXAMPLE III The procedure of Example I and II was followed with anadditional step of adding sufiicient sodium sulfite during the blendingstep so that the amount of sodium sulfite added represents 1% of the dryweight of the final product. The sodium sulfite was added to bleach thenormally red or pink pulp and skin so that the final powdered productobtained is white. The sodium sulfite also functions as an antisepticagent for microoranisms.

EXAMPLE IV This example illustrates a typical active principleformulation, a method for preparing chewable tablets therefrom and theresults of tests on subjects after having chewed the tablets containingthe powdered product produced according to Example I, above.

The formulation used to make the tablets is set forth in Table I.

tablet The following procedurewas carried out at a temperature of68-75F. with relative humidity of less than to prepare the tablets. Theingredients set forth in Table I were mixed and blended, including theactive principle obtained by the process of Example I at a concentrationof 20 milligrams active principle per tablet. The particle size rangedfrom less than 50 p. to 150 11..

The tablets were made by pressing the formulation in a Stokes RotaryTablet Press (B2) using a standard twelve thirty-seconds inches concavepunch. The tablets had a hardness (Monsanto) of 3.0 3.5 Kg. and weighed400 milligrams.

The tablets were tested for their taste-modifying effects by a procedurethat determines the apparent sweetness effected by a standard citricacid solution after chewing the tablet containing the active principle,and comparing this sweetness to sugar solutions of known concentration.Each subject rinsed his mouth for one minute with distilled water. Thetablet containing the active principle then was thoroughly chewed for 1minute. Then the subject rinsed his mouth with distilled water for 30seconds and waited 2 minutes. The subject then tasted a standard citricacid solution (0.03M). After tasting the citric acid solution, the sub-50 ject rinsed with distilled water for 30 seconds. After ex periencingthe sweetness of the citric acid solution, the subject was then requiredto compare the sweetness experienced with standard sugar solutions ofknown concentrations to determine the relative sweetness of the citricacid solution. The results for each formulation as a function of timewas as shown in Table II. v

The period of effectiveness is .affected by the extent of salivation;the more one salivates the faster the effect wears off. The above datawas collected by stimulating at frequent intervals. It is not likelythat the period of effectiveness could be reduced by more than 10% or15% by increased salivation caused by the intense taste testing.However, if one administers the active principle, but then does not eator'otherwise stimulate the taste receptors or does not otherwise causeincreased salivation, then the period of effectiveness stated in TableII could be extended as much as 50%.

TABLE II ORGANOLEPTlC EVALUATION Formulation Taste-modifying effectRetained full level Time after which it Time before the became effectivein: of sweetness for: became objectionable: effect was completely(minutes) (minutes) gone: (minutes) Table l Instantly (less than 45minutes 75 minutes 90 minutes l seconds) We claim:

1. In a composition for suppressing sour taste and enless than about 25wt.% carbohydrates of the ripe fruit hancing sweet and salt taste, saidcomposition retaining and said process is characterized by removing notless its taste-modifying characteristics at normal room temthan 75 wt.%of the carbohydrates of said ripe fruit peratures for long periods oftime and comprising parfrom said comminuted ripe fruit and discardingsaid not ticulate solid material rich in the taste-modifying prin- 15less than 75 wt.%. ciple of the ripe fruit of S \'nsepalum a'ulcificumDaniell, 2. The composition of claim 1 wherein said process saidcomposition being obtained from said ripe fruit by includes removing anddiscarding substantially all of the process including comminuting saidripe fruit to the fats of the ripe fruit. rupture the cellular structurethereof, and separating 3. The composition of claim 1 wherein saidprocess the vaporous, liquid and enzymatic components of the includesremoving and discarding substantially all the fats and pigments of theripe fruit.

4. The composition of claim 1 including sodium sulfite in an amount upto one wt.%.

5.-The composition of claim 2 including sodium sulfite in an amount upto one wt.%.

1. IN A COMPOSITION FOR SUPPERSSING SOUR TASTE AND ENHANCING SWEET ANDSALT TASTE, SAID COMPOSITION RETAINING ITS TASTE-MODIFYINGCHARACTERISTICS AT NORMAL ROOM TEMPERATURES FOR LONG PERIODS OF TIMECOMPRISING A PARTICULATE-SOLID MATERIAL RICH IN THE TASTE-MODIFYINGPRINCIPLE OF THE RIPE FRUIT OF SYNSEPALUM DULCIFCUM DANIELL, SAIDCOMPOSITION IS SUBSTANTIALLY FREE OF THE RIPE FRUIT BY THE PROCESSINCLUDING COMMINUTING SAID RIPE FRUIT TO RUPTURE THE CELLULAR STRUCTURETHEREOF, AND SEPARATING THE VAPOROUS, LIQUID AND ENZYMATIC COMPONENTS OFTHE RIPE FRUIT THAT DEGRADE THE TASTE-MODIFYING PRINCIPLE FROM THEPORTIONS OF THE RIPE FRUIT RICH IN THE TASTE-MODIFYING PRINCIPLE,WHEREBY SAID COMPOSITION IS SUBSTANTIALLY FREE OF THE ACTIVE COMPONENTSOF THE RIPE FRUIT THAT OTHERWISE DEGRADE THE TASTE-MODIFYING PRINCIPLE,THAT IMPROVEMENT WHEREIN SAID COMPOSITION CONTAINS LESS THAN ABOUT 25WT.& CARBOHYDRATED OF THE RIPE FRUIT AND SAID PROCESS IS CHARACTERIZEDBY REMOVING NOT LESS THAN 74 WT.% OF THE CARBOHYDRATES OF SAID RIPEFRUIT FROM SAID COMMINTED RIPE FRUIT AND DISCARDING SAID NOT LESS THAN75 WT.%.
 2. The composition of claim 1 wherein said process includesremoving and discarding substantially all of the fats of the ripe fruit.3. The composition of claim 1 wherein said process includes removing anddiscarding substantially all the fats and pigments of the ripe fruit. 4.The composition of claim 1 including sodium sulfite in an amount up toone wt.%.
 5. The composition of claim 2 including sodium sulfite in anamount up to one wt.%.